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OCLC agrees to acquire Relais International to provide library consortia more options for resource sharing

posted by Bob Murphy
on Tue, 01/17/2017 - 16:27

DUBLIN, Ohio, 17 January 2017—OCLC has agreed to acquire Relais International, a leading interlibrary loan solution provider based in Ottawa, Canada, to significantly increase resource sharing options and capabilities for both Relais customers and OCLC member libraries and groups worldwide.

Relais has been working with libraries for more than 20 years to provide solutions for the full range of interlibrary loan and consortial resource sharing services. All Relais staff members will join the OCLC staff.

“Resource sharing is at the heart of OCLC’s mission, helping patrons find and get the materials they need. Today, we not only announced the release of Tipasa, the first-ever cloud based interlibrary loan management system, but we’re now pleased to add new technological capabilities through the addition of Relais,” said Skip Prichard, OCLC President and CEO. “Relais is the leader in consortial borrowing, facilitating the highest fill rate in the industry. Together, we will combine the best communities, best talent and best solutions to serve libraries and groups around the world. This is an excellent fit for libraries, Relais and OCLC.”

Relais D2D (Discovery to Delivery) solution is the market leader in consortial borrowing, and continues to grow. It is a state-of-the-art solution consistent with OCLC’s vision for a new service to address the needs of consortial borrowing users.

“We’ve been an OCLC partner for years, and we have a strong relationship with the OCLC team,” said Clare MacKeigan, Chief Operating Officer, Relais International. “We have been considering the long-term sustainability and continuity of service to our growing customer base. OCLC will provide a solid future for Relais and all of our current customers. OCLC shares our vision. We’re confident that OCLC is the best home for Relais, and I’m excited to be joining the OCLC team.”

OCLC currently offers resource sharing solutions on the WorldShare technology platform. The WorldShare Interlibrary Loan service provides core ILL capabilities to thousands of libraries. Today, OCLC also announced the roll-out of Tipasa, the first cloud-based interlibrary loan management system. The acquisition of Relais will provide a best-in-class consortial borrowing solution. Together, these systems and services deliver a comprehensive set of resource sharing solutions for libraries around the world.

Learn more about Relais and how it fits in OCLC’s resource sharing strategy at the OCLC Resource Sharing User Group Meeting during the ALA Midwinter meeting in Atlanta on Sunday, January 22, at 4 p.m. in the Georgia World Congress Center, Room A410.

There will be more discussion about Relais and OCLC during the 2017 OCLC Resource Sharing Conference, March 14-16, at the Hilton Virginia Beach Oceanfront in Virginia Beach, Virginia.